Have you ever had a dream you wanted to see fulfilled and thought, 'I wish I could do that, but it's just too big a project and I'm not sure if I've got what it takes'.

I've heard these or similar words so many times throughout my adult years that they got me asking myself why people think they can't achieve their dreams. If everyone thought that way we wouldn't have the wonderful inventions that help make our daily life easier.

The biggest reason most people have for not achieving their goals or dreams is because they can be frightened of failing, or worse still, succeeding. These are real fears and are at the extremes on the failing/succeeding scale, and they are ones that must be overcome if you're going to realise your dreams.

So how do we overcome these fears? The first question to ask yourself is how much do I want see this dream fulfilled? This seems like a simple question, but is it really? What's behind your thought process that you're wanting to achieve your goal? Am I doing it because I want fame? Is the goal going to change people's lives in some way? Or is it something I want to do to see if I've got what it takes to complete a big project? Am I doing it because I want more financial independence?

These are all legitimate questions, and each of them impact on how you approach the task of achieving the goal. You can work toward your goal but the journey to the ending is different in each scenario. Fame can be a wonderful thing if you seek attention, but what happens when you get bad attention, will the end be worth it and can you live with negative press? Changing people's lives is a noble thing to do and is a great legacy to leave behind for the next generation. There aren't too many negatives there. Working toward your goal to see if you've got what it takes is another good reason to be goal planning. In this scenario, it brings to mind my philosophy of life - nothing ventured, nothing gained. If you don't try, what hope is there of achieving.

When I wrote my first book all I saw was the end: 200 pages of text. Wow, how was I going to achieve that? If I was going to achieve the writing of the book, I told myself, to get writing and don't stop until I've reached the end. Okay, I started, and after a couple of hours of typing my story I'd thought I'd have several pages done. To my disappointment I'd only done a page and a half. My self-esteem was squashed and for several days I agonised of whether this writing caper was for me.

Many people go through this time of doubt. The project is so large they have no idea how long it's going to take and whether they have the time to do it. They become overwhelmed, but if you're meant to be working toward your goal the project will still be in your head nagging to be done and it won't go away.

If this is the case, you're meant to go ahead with your project, so be brave, step out and give it a go, but before you start think about your motivations for wanting to achieve the goal, because it's your motivation that will be a major part of whether you succeed or fail.

Until next time, think about your motivation and then we'll look at the best approach to take to achieve your goal. Leave me a comment to let me know your motivation or perhaps you need some help in clarifying what your motivation is.